Why Nutritionists Play An Essential Role In Children's Growth & Development
During the crucial growth years in children, nutrition plays a crucial role in physical, cognitive and behavioural growth and development. Nutrition includes what a child is eating and drinking throughout the day. A child just like an adult needs a balanced meal that includes all essential nutrients – carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and fibre in appropriate amounts. Each of these nutrients has a vital role in the growth and development of the child. A qualified child nutrition specialist guides parents on how to plan balanced meals during the early years when children tend to grow faster.
Here are some ways in which an offline or online child nutritionist can help parents with the nutrition of their children:
- The first thing a child nutritionist does is evaluate the needs of each child differently based on the nutrition recommendations for the age.
- She can help a young mother during the weaning stage. Introducing foods of different flavours and textures will ensure less pickiness as the child grows.
- Similarly, toddlerhood is a period when the child starts getting fussy about food. A good child nutritionist will help the parent devise strategies to ensure maximum nutrition through nutrient-dense food during these tough years. And, all this without compromising on nutrition and the taste of food.
- Balanced meal plans will also ensure robust immunity in children. This will make them fall less sick and they will also recover faster.
- Children’s energy and nutrient needs vary with age. Demands for certain nutrients like calcium, iron, magnesium and protein increase during the extended periods of growth and development, namely adolescence. A child nutritionist can help parents plan and incorporate these special nutrients into their daily diet.
- They can also counsel teens and adolescents to help them deal with image issues related to their weight if any. She can talk to them about how fad diets bring harm to the body and explain the need for a well-balanced diet.
- If the child is having any developmental issues or facing some kind of allergies like gluten or lactose or has diabetes, the child nutrition specialist can help in devising a balanced food plan depending on the condition.
Good nutrition is essential at any age. Poor dietary practices can slow the growth of the child. A child dietician in Mumbai is an authorized expert who helps children reach their potential – physical and mental. Along with healthy foods, she also teaches children to enjoy junk foods, sweets, desserts, and packaged foods while keeping their intake under check. Hence, helping the child make intelligent food choices is an art that can be taught by a child nutrition specialist. Just as a nutritionist can help an adult with their food habit, a child nutritionist plays a vital role in helping develop sound eating habits in childhood which can pave the way for a healthy adulthood in children.